The First Book of Moses: Genesis

⭑ Berean Study Bible :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 30 -

When Rachel saw that she was not bearing any children for Jacob, she envied her sister. “Give me children, or I will die!” she said to Jacob.

Jacob became angry with Rachel and said, “Am I in the place of God, who has withheld children from you?”

Then she said, “Here is my maidservant Bilhah. Sleep with her, that she may bear children for me,(a) so that through her I too can build a family.”

So Rachel gave Jacob her servant Bilhah as a wife, and he slept with her,

and Bilhah conceived and bore him a son.

Then Rachel said, “God has vindicated me; He has heard my plea and given me a son.” So she named him Dan.(b)

And Rachel’s servant Bilhah conceived again and bore Jacob a second son.

Then Rachel said, “In my great struggles, I have wrestled with my sister and won.” So she named him Naphtali.(c)

Gad and Asher

When Leah saw that she had stopped having children, she gave her servant Zilpah to Jacob as a wife.

And Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a son.

Then Leah said, “How fortunate!”(d) So she named him Gad.(e)

When Leah’s servant Zilpah bore Jacob a second son,

Leah said, “How happy I am! For the women call me happy.” So she named him Asher.(f)

Now during the wheat harvest, Reuben went out and found some mandrakes in the field. When he brought them to his mother, Rachel begged Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

But Leah replied, “Is it not enough that you have taken away my husband? Now you want to take my son’s mandrakes as well?” “Very well,” said Rachel, “he may sleep with you tonight in exchange for your son’s mandrakes.”

When Jacob came in from the field that evening, Leah went out to meet him and said, “You must come with me, for I have hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” So he slept with her that night.

Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah

And God listened to Leah, and she conceived and bore a fifth son to Jacob.

Then Leah said, “God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.” So she named him Issachar.(g)

Again Leah conceived and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

“God has given me a good gift,” she said. “This time my husband will honor me, because I have borne him six sons.” And she named him Zebulun.(h)

After that, Leah gave birth to a daughter and named her Dinah.

Joseph

Then God remembered Rachel. He listened to her and opened her womb,

and she conceived and gave birth to a son. “God has taken away my shame,” she said.

She named him Joseph,(i) and said, “May the LORD add to me another son.”

Jacob Prospers

Now after Rachel had given birth to Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me on my way so I can return to my homeland.

Give me my wives and children for whom I have served you, that I may go on my way. You know how hard I have worked for you.”

But Laban replied, “If I have found favor in your eyes, please stay. I have learned by divination that the LORD has blessed me because of you.”

And he added, “Name your wages, and I will pay them.”

Then Jacob answered, “You know how I have served you and how your livestock have thrived under my care.

Indeed, you had very little before my arrival, but now your wealth has increased many times over. The LORD has blessed you wherever I set foot. But now, when may I also provide for my own household?”

“What can I give you?” Laban asked. “You do not need to give me anything,” Jacob replied. “If you do this one thing for me, I will keep on shepherding and keeping your flocks.

Let me go through all your flocks today and remove from them every speckled or spotted sheep, every dark-colored lamb, and every spotted or speckled goat. These will be my wages.

So my honesty will testify for me when you come to check on my wages in the future. If I have any goats that are not speckled or spotted, or any lambs that are not dark-colored, they will be considered stolen.”

“Agreed,” said Laban. “Let it be as you have said.”

That very day Laban removed all the streaked or spotted male goats and every speckled or spotted female goat—every one that had any white on it—and every dark-colored lamb, and he placed them under the care of his sons.

Then he put a three-day journey between himself and Jacob, while Jacob was shepherding the rest of Laban’s flocks.

Jacob, however, took fresh branches of poplar, almond, and plane trees, and peeled the bark, exposing the white inner wood of the branches.

Then he set the peeled branches in the watering troughs in front of the flocks coming in to drink. So when the flocks were in heat and came to drink,

they mated in front of the branches. And they bore young that were streaked or speckled or spotted.

Jacob set apart the young, but made the rest face the streaked dark-colored sheep in Laban’s flocks. Then he set his own stock apart and did not put them with Laban’s animals.

Whenever the stronger females of the flock were in heat, Jacob would place the branches in the troughs, in full view of the animals, so that they would breed in front of the branches.

But if the animals were weak, he did not set out the branches. So the weaker animals went to Laban and the stronger ones to Jacob.

Thus Jacob became exceedingly prosperous. He owned large flocks, maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.

Footnotes

(a)30:3 Literally bear children on my knees

(b)30:6 Dan means He has judged or He has vindicated.

(d)30:11 Alternate MT reading (see also LXX); the other alternate reads “A troop is coming!”

(e)30:11 Gad sounds like the Hebrew for good fortune, or alternately for band of raiders.

(f)30:13 Asher means happy.

(g)30:18 Issachar sounds like the Hebrew for wages or reward.

(h)30:20 Zebulun sounds like the Hebrew for honor.

(i)30:24 Joseph means may He add.

When Rachel saw that she bore Jacob no children, Rachel envied her sister. She said to Jacob, “Give me children, or else I will die.”

Jacob’s anger burned against Rachel, and he said, “Am I in God’s place, who has withheld from you the fruit of the womb?”

She said, “Behold, my maid Bilhah. Go in to her, that she may bear on my knees, and I also may obtain children by her.”

She gave him Bilhah her servant as wife, and Jacob went in to her.

Bilhah conceived, and bore Jacob a son.

Rachel said, “God has judged me, and has also heard my voice, and has given me a son.” Therefore she called his name Dan.

Bilhah, Rachel’s servant, conceived again, and bore Jacob a second son.

Rachel said, “I have wrestled with my sister with mighty wrestlings, and have prevailed.” She named him Naphtali.

Gad and Asher

When Leah saw that she had finished bearing, she took Zilpah, her servant, and gave her to Jacob as a wife.

Zilpah, Leah’s servant, bore Jacob a son.

Leah said, “How fortunate!” She named him Gad.

Zilpah, Leah’s servant, bore Jacob a second son.

Leah said, “Happy am I, for the daughters will call me happy.” She named him Asher.

Reuben went in the days of wheat harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to his mother, Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, “Please give me some of your son’s mandrakes.”

Leah said to her, “Is it a small matter that you have taken away my husband? Would you take away my son’s mandrakes, also?” Rachel said, “Therefore he will lie with you tonight for your son’s mandrakes.”

Jacob came from the field in the evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, “You must come in to me; for I have surely hired you with my son’s mandrakes.” He lay with her that night.

Issachar, Zebulun, and Dinah

God listened to Leah, and she conceived, and bore Jacob a fifth son.

Leah said, “God has given me my hire, because I gave my servant to my husband.” She named him Issachar.

Leah conceived again, and bore a sixth son to Jacob.

Leah said, “God has endowed me with a good dowry. Now my husband will live with me, because I have borne him six sons.” She named him Zebulun.

Afterwards, she bore a daughter, and named her Dinah.

Joseph

God remembered Rachel, and God listened to her, and opened her womb.

She conceived, bore a son, and said, “God has taken away my reproach.”

She named him Joseph,(a) saying, “May the LORD add another son to me.”

Jacob Prospers

When Rachel had borne Joseph, Jacob said to Laban, “Send me away, that I may go to my own place, and to my country.

Give me my wives and my children for whom I have served you, and let me go; for you know my service with which I have served you.”

Laban said to him, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, stay here, for I have divined that the LORD has blessed me for your sake.”

He said, “Appoint me your wages, and I will give it.”

Jacob said to him, “You know how I have served you, and how your livestock have fared with me.

For it was little which you had before I came, and it has increased to a multitude. The LORD has blessed you wherever I turned. Now when will I provide for my own house also?”

Laban said, “What shall I give you?” Jacob said, “You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed your flock and keep it.

I will pass through all your flock today, removing from there every speckled and spotted one, and every black one among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats. This will be my hire.

So my righteousness will answer for me hereafter, when you come concerning my hire that is before you. Every one that is not speckled and spotted among the goats, and black among the sheep, that might be with me, will be considered stolen.”

Laban said, “Behold, let it be according to your word.”

That day, he removed the male goats that were streaked and spotted, and all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had white in it, and all the black ones among the sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.

He set three days’ journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban’s flocks.

Jacob took to himself rods of fresh poplar, almond, and plane tree, peeled white streaks in them, and made the white appear which was in the rods.

He set the rods which he had peeled opposite the flocks in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink. They conceived when they came to drink.

The flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks produced streaked, speckled, and spotted.

Jacob separated the lambs, and set the faces of the flocks toward the streaked and all the black in Laban’s flock. He put his own droves apart, and didn’t put them into Laban’s flock.

Whenever the stronger of the flock conceived, Jacob laid the rods in front of the eyes of the flock in the watering troughs, that they might conceive among the rods;

but when the flock were feeble, he didn’t put them in. So the feebler were Laban’s, and the stronger Jacob’s.

The man increased exceedingly, and had large flocks, female servants and male servants, and camels and donkeys.

Footnotes

(a)30:24 Joseph means “may he add”.